Kaine Seeks to Boost Glenn Nye

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) will headline a fundraiser tomorrow for Democratic Congressional Candidate Glenn Nye, who is challenging U.S. Rep. Thelma Drake (R-Va.). Tickets for the event, which is billed as "jamboree," range from $100 to $2,300.

Democratic strategists were optimistic earlier in the summer that Nye would give Drake, who was narrowly reelected in 2006, a serious challenge this year. Although only 33, Nye has built up an impressive resume, including serving as a diplomat in Iraq.

The 2nd District, which includes the Virginia Beach area and the Eastern Shore, leans Republican, but it also has a large black population, about 21 percent. With Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) at the top of the ticket, Nye would benefit from a large black turnout.

A few months ago, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee was touting polls that showed Nye to be very competitive with Drake. But in recent days, GOP leaders say internal party polls show Drake is comfortably ahead. There have also been questions about whether some establishment Democrats in Hampton Roads have fully gotten behind Nye.

Last week, Research 2000 conducted a poll on the race for the liberal website Daily Kos. The poll showed Drake with a 14 point lead, 51 to 37 percent.

Both men and women favored Drake over Nye by at least 10 percentage points. But the poll also showed Obama drawing only 41 percent of the vote in the 2nd District. If accurate, Obama would likely lose Virginia because most successful statewide Democratic candidates in recent years have gotten at least 47 percent of the vote in the 2nd.

Because other public polls show Obama with a statewide lead over McCain, there is still some hope for Nye that his race with Drake is closer than it appears.